A Crocodile's Journey

The Game

While little Kitwana was cute, he soon became quite a handful. Whenever Makuu was out of his sight, he'd cry and call out to him, much to the crocodiles' frustration—especially Makuu's. He had to stay within the chick's sight to give his crocodiles a moment of tranquility.

Besides that, most of the float soon grew fond of the little one's antics. Akina and Hodari, in particular, had gotten quite attached to him. Sadly for them both, Kitwana's whole attention was centered on Makuu— and he hated it. All he wanted was to bask peacefully, but it was hard when Kitwana asked for food every half an hour.

"I swear, if I had known bird chicks were this annoying..." Makuu muttered while bringing Kitwana his fifth cricket of the day. 

"Food! Food!" Kitwana yelled, flapping his little wings.

"Okay, okay! I heard you. You can stop yelling!" Hopefully, the cricket was soft enough for Kitwana to eat without chewing it first. Kitwana snatched the snack from his caretaker in a way reminiscent of a crocodile hatchling. "Hey, chew it first, or you'll choke!"

Too late. Kitwana's attempt at swallowing the cricket whole got stuck in his throat. Grumbling in irritation, Makuu gingerly grabbed the cricket's leg and pulled it out of Kitwana's throat. Despite the experience, Kitwana tried to snatch the cricket again; Makuu lifted it out of reach with a frown.

"Chew and then swallow."

Tentatively, he lowered the cricket once again. Kitwana heeded his words this time and did not swallow it whole. Instead, he started pecking off little parts of the cricket and chewing them before swallowing them. While Kitwana ate, Makuu started walking back towards Akina to bask; unfortunately, Kitwana soon darted after him.

"Mama, I wanna play!" he said innocently.

"For the hundredth time, kiddo, I'm not your mama."

"I want to play, mama!"

Makuu growled. That's it. "Okay, kiddo, it's time we establish some rules."

Kitwana tilted his head. "What are rules?"

"Rules let you know what you can and can't do." He took the following silence as a sign that Kitwana understood. "Rule number one, you don't call me mama."

"Why not?"

"Because 'mama' is a female term, and I certainly am not a female. Instead, you may call me Makuu."

Kitwana remained silent and then repeated. "Makuu."

The crocodile nodded approvingly. "That's right. Rule number two: stay in the nest unless I call you. Okay?"

Kitwana nodded.

"Rule number three: no hugging!"

"Why?"

"Crocodiles don't hug."

"Can we play now, Makuu?"

Makuu sighed. At least he remembered the first rule. "Kitwana, crocodiles don't play."

Kitwana tilted his head again. "Why not?"

"It's a waste of calories and energy. We need that energy when the herds cross the river."

"Is that why you're always asleep?"

"In a way, yes."

"How come Hodari doesn't sleep that much?"

"Because he's a gecko, kid."

"I don't like sleeping all the time! It's boring!" Kitwana whined.

"You don't have to, you know. You can... explore around here. Just stay close to Hodari and don't get too far away."